ARE YOU STRESSED?
There is no doubt that COVID-19 has the potential to be a catastrophic world-wide killer. Back in 1918 a flu pandemic killed an estimated 50 - 100 million people world wide. Chillingly, that virus was the most deadly to healthy adults.
By contrast, today's threat tends to attack the weakened and infirm. Because older people tend to have other health problems like heart and lung diseases they are more vulnerable to this infection. But it is not only older people who are vulnerable.
Young people with arthritis and auto-immune disorders can also be quite susceptible because of the drugs they are taking. These drugs that are given reduce joint pain and slow joint damage can increase risk for infections because they strongly suppress the same inflammatory response that is responsible for fighting off bacterial and viral invaders.
There is yet another reason that younger people without underlying health problems or immunosuppressive medications are falling prey to this horrible virus. The clues to their vulnerability were discovered decades ago by a Canadian endocrinologist.
Back in the 1970s Dr. Hans Selye was researching the effects of stress on the hormonal system. What he discovered might surprise you: there is bad stress he called “distress” and there is good stress that he called “eustress” (pronounced you-stress).
Distress was just exactly what most of us call stress. You know what I mean. Let’s say that you have a big project due tomorrow at work that you are behind on. You didn't sleep well last night because you were worried about it. This morning you slept through your alarm and didn’t even have time for breakfast. Now you are running late to work and, of course, you hit every red light along the way.
Dr. Selye found that your hormonal system pumps out cortisols when you are in distress. Cortisols are just natural versions of cortisone, the same drug that is used by doctors to suppress your immune system to slow down autoimmune disorders and arthritis.
Ever wonder why people who are highly stressed seem to catch every little bug that comes around? Cortisols are the reason.
Dr. Selye also saw that some stress had an upside that made us stronger and healthier. He called this eustress using the Latin root word “eu” meaning good, correct or true.
Eustress is when you have all but finished the big project that is due tomorrow at work. Last night you relaxed and went for a long walk. This morning you woke up naturally without even setting an alarm feeling wonderful after a great night of deep sleep. You left early for work and hit every green light along the route.
When Selye analyzed the hormones surging through a person in eustress he found human growth hormone, testosterone, estrogen and erythropoietin rather than cortisol. These chemicals are anabolic because they help you become stronger and heal faster.
Many of us are familiar with the term anabolic because of the cheating scandals in bicycle racing and other professional sports. Some athletes were caught injecting anabolic steroids which are just artificial versions of anabolic hormones. They used these performance enhancing drugs to grow stronger and heal faster.
People in distress produce catabolic (think catastrophic) hormones like cortisol. These chemicals can save our lives in short term dire circumstances but become extremely destructive if the situation persists.
As a great example of the life-saving abilities of cortisols you might remember Aron Ralston who was trapped by his wrist in a slot canyon in Utah some years ago. He would never have survived hanging there for five days if his body had not produced cortisols. In order to stay alive Aron needed to temporarily stop all normal body maintenance and immune response in order to save energy.
Do you see where I am going with this? People who live in good stress will be more able to defend themselves from a coronavirus infection. People who live in a constant state of distress will more easily fall prey to this deadly adversary.
So how do we get out of distress and start living in eustress? I am glad you asked that question because that is what we have been doing for the past 40 plus years here at Dr. Borman and Associates.
We are dedicated to helping every one of our patients feel better, move better and sleep better. We also work with our patients to understand how diet, exercise and emotional health can discourage distress and encourage our body to live in eustress.
Another way of talking about eustress is to call it health.When you are healthy, it just makes sense that you will have a natural advantage when it comes to fending off any infection including the coronavirus.
Perhaps you know of someone who needs to begin their journey to eustress and health. There is no better time to get started toward feeling wonderful and sleeping great than right now. The stakes are both very real and very present.
This is why we have decided to keep our office open during this crucial moment in history. We are dedicated to providing our essential services to all those who need our help now and in the future.
We have instituted rigorous procedures to keep everything deep cleaned and to maintain social distancing in the office. We will be meeting every patient in the building ground floor lobby to check them for fever and question them about any suspicious symptoms before they are allowed upstairs. We will be pushing the elevator buttons so you don’t have to. Patients will be spaced out and staggered so that there is no interaction. Any drivers, friends, and family members will be asked to remain outside in their cars. You will be wearing your own mask and your doctor will be wearing theirs.
Chiropractic care is considered essential by both Denver and Colorado during the travel restrictions now in place. Just this week a national DHS task force stated that chiropractic care was an essential service in their “Guidance on the Critical Infrastructure Workforce: Ensuring Community and National Resilience in COVID-19”.
The critical difference between distress and eustress is a sense of being in control. No matter what your age is now is the time to re-assert your sense of control and take back the high ground.
You need to be able to walk and sleep and sit and work without pain so that you are living in a state of eustress. Give us a call today at 303-759-8514 and let us help you get healthy and stay healthy.